Junior co-captain Beau Kretzman had a goal and two assists on Friday night.

Amherst Men's Hockey Corrals Wild Third Period, Downs Tufts, 5-3

February 13, 2004

AMHERST, MA - In front of the largest home crowd in recent memory, the Amherst College menís hockey team scored three straight goals within a wild 1:34 stretch in the third period to notch a crucial 5-3 come-from-behind win over visiting NESCAC rival Tufts University on Friday night. Junior co-captain Beau Kretzman (Edina, MN) and sophomore forward Steve Nelson (Wayzata, MN) paced the Jeffs, now 10-9-2 overall and 5-9-1 in conference play, with a goal and two assists each.

Trailing 3-2 after Tufts junior forward Shawn Sullivan (Saugus, MA) christened the third period with his third goal of the game, Amherst sent the Orr Rink faithful into a frenzy with a trio of consecutive scoring strikes in rapid succession. Kretzman ignited the barrage 9:51 into the final stanza, knotting the score with a gorgeous move in front of the crease off a feed from Nelson. Just 18 seconds later, Amherst junior Brad Craigen (Kitchener, Ontario) sent a spectacular pass to classmate Marc Russell (Essex, VT), who tipped the game-winner past Tufts goalie Ben Crapser (Paxton, MA). Sophomore A.J. Greco (Williamsville, NY) added an insurance tally at 11:25 - a 3-on-3 backhander from the slot off feeds from Nelson and Kretzman - to punctuate the dramatic comeback.

Amherst rookie goalie Dan Smith (Rochester, MN) had a spectacular game, braving 39 Tufts shots with 36 saves. Crapser was under siege as well, tallying 33 saves before the Jumbos pulled the goalie for the final two minutes. Tufts dropped to 6-12-1 overall and 3-11-1 in conference play.

Amherst ran a series of promotions at Friday nightís game, including free popcorn and complementary raffle tickets for chances to win up to $2,000 in prizes. Several lucky fans walked away with Sanyo flat screen TVís, Emerson DVD players, Kodak digital cameras and Microsoft Xbox video game systems, among other prizes.